Introduction

Welcome to the new DominoCue page. Here you will find program documentation, information about the Domino puzzle format
and some solving tips. Since this is relatively new, this page is still under development,
but it should be sufficient to get you going with the program.

Download and installation

You need a PC running Windows 98, 2000, ME, XP, Vista, 7, 8, 8.1 or 10. You also need the .Net Framework version 2.0 or higher.

Download this DominoCue 1.0 installer package and install the software on your computer.

Domino Puzzles

A Domino puzzle starts with a grid completely filled with numbers. The size may vary, but for a 0-6 puzzle, the grid has 7 rows
and 8 columns and each number appears 8 times in this grid.

To solve the puzzle, you must draw borders between the numbers in such a way that the grid is completely covered with domino tiles.
A tile must be present for each number combination (0-0 through 6-6). The filter box will keep track of the placements.

User Manual

Start DominoCue from your programs menu. The program automatically generates a 0-9 Domino puzzle. To generate a new puzzle
of the same size, press F6. Use the menu if you want a different sized puzzle.

You can open DominoCue Game (.dmq) files from the menu.

The program accepts puzzles in string format from the clipboard. Copy the following line of text and paste it into the program.

40235513514603140342303562646402562433121401616205056125

DominoCue will recognize this as a valid 0-6 Domino game and load it correctly.

Using the Mouse

Left-click a border in the grid to toggle it on or off. You do not need to hit the border on the pixel, as long as you click in a
cell near one of the borders. If the distance to multiple borders is about the same, the program will not take a guess which
border you meant to click. If nothing happens, move the cursor a little closer to the border and try again.

Right-click a border to join the cells into a tile. DominoCue will draw the borders around these two cells.

When a tile is joined, it changes to a light yellow color. The filter box will also show this tile in a yellow color.
DominoCue will automatically scan the grid for adjacent cells with the same number combination and place a border between them.

Click a tile in the filter box to highlight all remaining candidates for that tile.
Click the selected tile again to turn off the filter.

Using the Keyboard

Use the arrow keys to navigate the tile filters.

F6 generates a new puzzle with the same size.

F8 shows a hint. Basic solving techniques have been implemented in the program.

F9 shows the solution.

Using the Menu

The File menu options need no explanation. Use Save progress to save the puzzle including the borders you've drawn.

The program can copy the puzzle in 3 formats.

Copy Grid is useful if you want to post the puzzle on a forum.

Copy Digits copies the digit values only.

Copy Progress puts a progress string on the clipboard. This string has the same format as the data in a save file.

Error Tracking

Both the grid and the filter box will show red background colors for error situations. These are:

Duplicate tiles

Isolated cells

Combinations with no candidate left

Reading the Status bar

The rating is a value determined by the backtracking solver. A rating of 1.0 will tell you that the puzzle can be solved with singles
only. Higher ratings indicate that the solver needed to check more alternatives to find the solution. This number is not directly
related to the human-style solving techniques required to solve the puzzle, but only a rough indication. Anything above 3.0 is usually
an interesting puzzle.

The status bar also shows how many singles could be placed before elimination techniques were needed. A good indicator to see if
the puzzle is interesting to solve.

Finally

Thanks to h3lix (Dan) for bringing this format to my attention.
Thanks to Para and Udosuk (Matt) for solving tips.
Check the forum for puzzle samples and additional information.
Use the support forum to report errors and beg for additional features.